FBI Director Chris Wray announced Wednesday he will resign at the end of President Joe Biden’s administration.
Here’s how some officials, including lawmakers, and others are reacting to the news:
Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, who chairs the Senate Judicial Committee, praised Wray, while saying the FBI “will soon embark on a perilous new era with serious questions about its future.”
Natalie Bara, President of the FBI Agents Association, thanked Wray “for his support for Special Agents, his leadership in the Bureau, and his service to his country.” She said as director, Wray “led the Bureau through challenging times with a steady focus on doing the work that keeps our country safe.”
Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Wray stepping aside is probably “the best decision,” but the Texas lawmaker argued that some of Trump’s frustration with the FBI wasn’t Wray’s fault.
“I think the problem that director Wray had was he wasn’t his own best spokesman, and I think what people were looking for was accountability for the misdeeds of the leadership and we didn’t see a lot of that,” Cornyn said.
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland praised Wray, saying that under his “principled leadership, the FBI has worked to fulfill the Justice Department’s mission to keep our country safe, protect civil rights, and uphold the rule of law.”
“He has my gratitude, the gratitude of the FBI agents and employees whose respect and admiration he has earned, and the gratitude of the American people,” Garland said in a statement.
GOP Sen. Kevin Cramer called Wray’s decision to step down before the start of Trump administration “noble,” and said he hopes Kash Patel will be confirmed as the next director of the agency.
“When it comes to (Wray’s) relationship with Donald Trump, it was tainted by the fact that he authorized the FBI to raid his home. And to think somehow he could survive that and maintain his job while Donald Trump becomes president would have been untenable. So I’m glad he did it before he got fired,” the North Dakota senator said.
Democratic Sen. Peter Welch, who sits on the Judiciary Committee, said that it is “really regrettable” that Wray is stepping down.
“The FBI has a 10-year term, and the reason for that is to keep politics out of the FBI, so I think it’s really regrettable that he clearly is responding to pressure and cutting short his term,” the Vermont lawmaker said.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, the incoming chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, told CNN that Wray’s plans to resign is “good for the country” after what he called Wray’s “political weaponization” of the agency.
“I voted for Wray,” the Iowa Republican said. “I thought I’d see some real changes in the FBI. He would say he’s made some changes, but when it comes to the political weaponization of the FBI and when it comes to not answering my oversight letters … when he was confirmed he said that he would answer our letters.”
This post was updated with more reactions to Wray’s resignation.
